Food waste

Slow Food believes that in a world where millions are undernourished and resources are limited, reducing food waste is an essential step in achieving a sustainable food system.

The present system in which we find ourselves as consumers and producers is founded on a mechanism of overproduction and waste, on the rapid selling-off of stock to put new products on the market, and the provision of food that is aesthetically perfect.

According to the FAO, roughly one third of the food produced in the world for human consumption every year — approximately 1.3 billion tons — gets lost or wasted. Meanwhile over 840 million people worldwide (12% of the world population) are undernourished.

In developing countries food waste and losses occur mainly at early stages of the food value chain and can often be traced back to financial or technical constraints in harvesting and storage. In medium- and high-income countries food is wasted and lost mainly at later stages in the supply chain, in supermarkets, restaurants and households. Along with it we waste the soil, water, and all the resources used to produce, package, store and transport it.

At the center of our work is the strong belief that the key to fighting food waste is to give food back the value that it deserves.